How to Survive Working from Home

The Ergonomic Challenge

Perhaps you
have thought about how great it would be to work from home. No commute, wear
whatever you want, sit where you want, in fact you can stay in bed and work if
you desire. No more dealing with office cubicles, desks, uncomfortable chairs
or that vent blowing air directly on your shoulders. You have your own private
bathroom, take breaks when you want, nobody taking your food from the break
room fridge and no boss looking over your shoulder. Perfect, you think, sign me
up!

Suddenly you
got your chance; the Covid 19 pandemic closed your office down and now you have
your dream of working from home. It has been a couple weeks already, is your
dream turning into a nightmare? How are you feeling physically? Is your neck
painful and stiff? Shoulders ache? Back painful? Headaches building up each
day? Hands numb and tingling? Tired and sore in general?

What
happened? You thought you would feel better working from the comforts of home.
Unfortunately a better work environment is not as simple as grabbing a laptop
computer and staying home. The issues of body mechanics and work ergonomics
don’t disappear once you leave the office. In fact, they can become more
apparent once you leave an environment designed for the activity of work.

At the office
you have a desk and chair that were designed for the task at hand. The work
station was built with your work in mind. The tools (phone, keyboard, mouse,
printer, stapler, etc.) you need are there and are designed for your work.

At home you
take a laptop, set it on the kitchen table and “go to work”. Later you shift to
the couch, put the computer on the coffee table and lean over it to finish the
report. By the end of the work day you are reclining back on the couch with the
laptop balanced on your knees. You finish at night lying on your stomach in bed
checking e-mails. None of those positions are anything close to an efficient
posture. Each of them strains your body excessively and creates pain.

How can you achieve
effective body mechanics at home and eliminate unnecessary strain on your
joints? The best option is to get the equipment and furniture designed for an
office. If you are making working from home a permanent move, investing in a
properly designed work station makes sense. Set aside an area for your “home
office” and outfit it with the furniture and equipment you need: Desk with
keyboard tray. Laptop docking station. Full size keyboard and mouse. Monitor
(or multiple monitors) large enough to see your work without squinting or
leaning forward. Task chair that fits your body height and frame size. It is
worth the investment to have a healthy and ergonomically efficient station.

What if
working from home is only temporary or occasional? There are still simple
things you can do to have a good ergonomic set up and protect your health.
Let’s start with the end in mind; what is the ideal posture for sitting and
working (we will start from the ground and progress up to the head):

Feet should be able to rest flat
on the ground.

Knees should bent between 90 to 100
degrees.

Hips should also be at 90 to 100
degrees.

Butt is pushed all the way to the
back of the seat.

Low back and mid back has support
from the seat.

Elbows are at your side, not
reaching out.

Elbows are bent 90 to 100
degrees.

Wrists/hands are in straight
alignment with forearms.

Shoulders are back (not
rolled/hunched forward).

Head is balanced over neck and
shoulders.

Looking straight ahead not tilted
down.

Bet your work
posture looks nothing like that especially when your computer is a laptop. And
there is no way to achieve even a few of those points working in bed or on the
couch. So as tempting as it may be to lounge in bed or the couch to work,
don’t; you will surely end up hurting and with headaches.

Here is what
to do: Pick a good chair like a kitchen or dining room chair. Sit down with
your butt all the way to the back. If your feet don’t reach the ground, make a
foot rest using a short box, a ream of paper or something else about that size.
If sitting deep in the seat has your knees touching the edge of the chair, put
a pillow or cushion behind you to give support. If your low back needs more
support, take a towel and roll it up to put it in the curve of your low back.

Sit at a
standard height table (kitchen, dining room) and place your lap top on the
table. Now here is the challenge: It is NOT possible to achieve ideal seated
posture working at a lap top. Either the keyboard will be at a good height and
the monitor much too low, or the monitor at the correct height and the keyboard
way too high. The BEST solution is to get a full size keyboard and a mouse (go
wireless for best set up but even standard wired ones will do the trick), place
the laptop up at the best height for you to see the monitor and set the
keyboard in your lap. In this position your elbows will be at your side, your
shoulders relaxed and your wrists/hands in alignment. Plus a full size keyboard
allows you to keep your chest open; those tiny laptop keyboards not only don’t have
all the nice functions but force you to pinch your shoulders and elbows inward
causing tension in the chest and shoulders.

Lastly is the
monitor, make sure the monitor is high enough that your head is lifted up and eyes
straight ahead. If needed put a book or two beneath the laptop to lift it
higher. Now place the laptop at a distance that you can clearly and easily see
all the print on the screen. Usually this is about arm’s length.

This sounds
“involved” but it really is not. Take it step by step from the floor up and it
will come together. It is pretty simple to demonstrate, so when you come to the
office, ask us and we will show you.

Couple of
other quick tips:

Take mini breaks from your work
and stand up for one minute every half hour. Focus on a point twenty feet
away for twenty seconds, then focus in close for twenty seconds and end
with looking at a far point for the last twenty seconds.

Set a start and finish time for
your work day and try to stick to it; don’t let your work bleed into your
family and personal time.

Make a dedicated place for your
work away from your personal space if possible. The dining room or kitchen
work for people without a spare room. This lets you separate from work
when you are “off the clock”. It is another reason NOT to work in your bed
or on your couch. Those are places for you to rest and relax. You don’t
want to see your work when you are trying to get some relaxation.

In summary:
Get a full size keyboard and mouse. Use a proper chair like a kitchen chair if
you don’t have an office chair. Sit at a standard height table. Sit deep in the
seat. Support your back. Put the keyboard in your lap. Place the laptop up on
the table (or lifted higher if necessary).

Try it out
and see how you feel working with this more ergonomically efficient posture
versus your slouched and hunched positions on the couch or in bed.